Gosmer church / Gosmer kirke , Hads herred, Århus amt.

Gosmer kirke, foto: stig bachmann nielsen, Naturplan.dk

The large church in Gosmer was possibly dedicated to Sct. Theobald, since a reliquary was found in the communion table in the beginning of the 1700s, which had a note "in honorem Skt. Theobaldi". The church has apse, choir and nave which repeats the Romanesque building, a late Gothic tower to the west, a porch from 1866 to the south and a chapel to the north. The Romanesque building was totally rebuilt in 1866, probably mostly in the old materials and in its old figure, but strongly normalized. It is built in granite ashlars upon a bevel plinth, in apse with a double plinth. On the southside of the choir is a priest-portal with half-pillars and tympanum with a characteristic relief of the Deposition. The south portal has also half-pillars and tympanum, but the relief is here a human figure between two lions and two dragons, framed by a foliage edge, related to portals in Tranbjerg and Stjær church. The reconstructed choir arch inside has the old plinth with an arcade frieze. Apse has a half-cupolar vault, choir and nave have a flat loft. The late Gothic tower, where the bottom room is furnished to a burial, is built in monk bricks and has a staircase in the south wall. The upper section is heavily rebuilt in 1775 and especially in 1866. A chapel at the north side of the tower was removed in the rebuild in 1866, and the porch was built and later the chapel at the north side of the nave.

portal

portal, tympanum

apse, pillar with human heads.

stone mason mark

in chapel

The altarpiece is a carving in late Renaissance by Peder Jensen Kolding from 1637 with "somehow sweety" 1800s biblical paintings - an older and rather worn out alterpainting stands behind the altarpiece. Candelabres from 1790 with coat of arms and initials of Joachim O. Schack-Rathlou. A  Romanesque granite font in Horsens-type with lions between cross friezes and leaves and with a palmetta frieze on the foot piece. A South German bowl from ab. 1550 . A sounding board from ab. 1640, probably by Peder Jensen Kolding like a crucifix. A bell without inscription, probably from the 1400s.

A fragment from a Romanesque gravestone is placed above the entrance to the tower . A worn out figure stone for a priest from 1600-1700s.

Gosmer church in a distance

In the tower room an inside burial for the family Rathlou. The tower arch is partly closed by a richly carved epitaph for Chr. Rathlou (+ 1752) and Sophie Schack (+ 1771), whose coffins and several other coffins stand in the room, which is closed by an iron gate from 1759 with their initials. In the cellar several other coffins : with Gregorius Rathlou (+ 1681), and wife etc. In the chapel at the northside of the nave is an inscription table from 1783 and here are three marble sarcophagi by Wiedewelt with Joachim O. Schack-Rathlou and his wife and daughter. The chapel, which has now disappeared at the northside of the tower, contained members of the family Holstein-Rathlou - they were removed to the burial chapel in the forest at Rathlousdal.

Dybvad

Dybvad was a farm under Åkær Manor. The famous professor Jørgen Dybvad (+ 1612) was born here as a son of the tenant Christoffer Eriksen. In 1617 it was inhabited by Ejler Gabrielsen Akeleye; the farm was very dilapidated at that time. In 1630 he got a life's letter on it, but in 1647 he got a letter on Skovsgård and Bjerager Hovgård instead,  whereafter D. was inhabited by Valdemar Lykke. In 1664 D. was with all estate  laid out to Joachim Gersdorff's heirs. The son Frederik Gersdorff's guardian conveyed in 1665 D. to Laurits Brorson (+ 1681). After the death of his widow Anne Jakobsdatter Friberg in 1693 some of the heirs conveyed their part in D. to her son-in-law Oluf Friis (+ 1698), priest in Hundslund, who in 1694, together with Magdalene Sibylle Brorson (+ 1734) widow after Iver Joh. Bredal, priest in Dover and owner of 2/7 of D.,  conveyed it to Otte Krabbe of Åkær, who in 1695 transferred the buy to his administrator Mads Nielsen Rosenlund (+ 1696); whose widow Anne Jensdatter Lasson in 1698 married Peder Thøgersen Lasson of Rødslet. In an exchange after him in 1738 D. was taken over by the son Thøger Lasson, who 1750 also became the owner of Åkær, under which D. was placed until 1798, when Diderich Henrik Koch bought it. He conveyed it in 1801 to Mourids Chr. Piper, who in 1806 was allowed to do some out-parcellings (in 51 parcels). In 1809 it was bought back to Åkær, but in 1914 it was sold to Chr. Kreutzfeldt (+ 1953), whose son Bent Kreutzfeldt owned it in 1963.

The main building is listed in class B.

Skovsgård in Søby (later Gersdorffslund) belonged in 1381 to Jens Pors, it is possibly the same farm, which in 1559 under the name of Porsborg was conveyed to the crown by Jørgen Rosenkrantz. The Crown gave in 1572 mayor in Horsens Adser Sørensen a life's letter in the farm, in 1577 he renounced it in return for Hansted Hovgård in Voer herred. In 1633 and 1652 Rasmus Thøgersen is mentioned in P. The last mentioned year he received some timber, when the farm had burnt down. On 1664 P. was with all estate by the Crown laid out to Joachim Gersdorff's heir, who from P. and Højbygård and estate established Gersdorffslund. Joachim Gersdorff's son-in-law Gregorius Rathlou (+ 1681) built the halftimbered main building in 1674; it burnt down in 1713 by arson, but was rebuilt at once by the son, Christian Rathlou (+ 1752), who in 1749 incorporated it in his newly established entailed estate Rathlousdal. After the abandonment of this in 1921 G. was in 1921 sold after some outparcellling to Chr. N Lind, who in 1924 sold it to Gregers Juel of Juelsberg, who submitted land to the jordlovsudvalg, before he in 1925 sold the main parcel to T. Viggaard-Jensen. In 1953 it was bought by T Sand, Stidsmølle.

The present main building is a cultured little building-work in the 1840s style. The large three winged avlsgård (farm building) is contemporary to the main building.

Højby (1386 Howby, 1403 Høybye) belonged to Niels Knudsen and went after his death before 1386 to his mother Ingeborg, a widow after Tyge Puder. Her son Bent Puder is in 1406 written of H., and he willed in 1408 half of H. and the main part of the other half to Århus cathedral. His brother Tyge Puder had part in the farm and bought in 1409 his halfsister Marine Knudsdatter's part (she was m. to Iver Munk). The estate was probably inherited by the daughter Abel Tygesdatter, m. to Niels Kalf, for the son-in-law David Saxesen was in 1446 written of H., and his widow Mette Nielsdatter Kalf sold in 1483 her part of H. to the bishop in Århus; in 1518 he complained that H. was used without his allowance. In 1492 H. was written in documents  among the estate of Erik Ottesen Rosenkrantz and was laid out in 1499 to his late son Holger's children; Holger Rosenkrantz' son's son Jørgen Rosenkrantz exchanged in 1559 H. to the Crown, who placed it under Åkær. It was later divided in 2 half farms, of which one in 1632 was decided as a residence for a fændrik (soldier). In 1654 Ejler Gabrielsen Akeleye got a half farm in H., and here he lived still in 1662,  80 year old. In 1661 the 2 farms with Åkær were laid out to Joachim Gersdorff's heirs, who let them demolish, the lands were placed under Gersdorffslund.

Bjørnkær (1427 Biørnkiers gaartzsted) belonged to Niels Kalf, whose widow Abel Tygesdatter Puder in 1427 conveyed B. gårdsted etc. to bishop Ulrik in Århus.

Bjørnkær Voldsted (castle bank) in the southeastern outskirt of Vandmoseskoven consists of two square banks, each surrounded and divided by a moat. The eastern bank is on three sides surrounded by an outer, higher placed dry moat. In the excavations in 1930-35 was on the eastern bank found a granite boulder foundation of a monk brick building (ab. 4,5 x 6,5m inside measure), in which western wall was seen a door in monk bricks. In the south and east wall are traces of windows. In the cellar room's northeastern corner was found a well, from which bottom came interesting finds of clay pots, dishes and funnels. This find was shared between Odder Museum and the National Museum. It seems to origin from the 13th or 14th century and must have been used for some kind of destillation.

Gosmer was among the estate, which hr. Niels Brok gave to Ring kloster in 1330, in 1345 Per Jensen of Nim, a canon in Lund and Århus gave G. Church all the new houses, which he had built on the church site in Gosmerholm (1345 Gasæmærholm); in 1444 the væbner Jens Mikkelsen of Gosmerholm is mentioned. G. was possibly placed where Præstholm now lies; P. was earlier an annex-vicarage, but in 1579 the vicar in Ørting-Gosmer was allowed to moved to here, since the vicarage in Ørting had no water; Chr. IV stayed here 20-22 February in 1609 at a journey from Dronningborg to Haderslev.

According to Valdemar's Jordebog the king owned 7 mark gold land in Søby. Fensten was among the estate, which Erik Plovpenning's daughter's son Erik Valdemarsen was given by law in 1327. Lindegård (1372 Lingaardt) in F. was sold by Ilved Andersen in 1384 to Thomes Vestenie, who in 1401 conveyed it to Poul Stigsen (Hvide), who in 1414 sold all his estate in F. to bishop Bo in Århus.

In the parish were the villages Husby (1427 Huszby), who was disappeared in the beginning of the 1400s, and Lemmestrup (ab. 1492 Lemestrup, 1544 Lymmerstrup), which was built 1688 with 5 farms and 2 houses. It was demolished partly in 1674 by the establishment of Gersdorffslund.

A Voldsted, the castlebank of Fensten Hovgaard was placed in the meadow close west of the present farm. The castle bank, which was surrounded by water, is described as being 3-4 m high. It was demolished in 1860, and on that occassion was found a large iron key, which later just disappeared. The leveling has been so thorough that the placement of the castle bank is not visible.      

Listed prehistorics: In Ravnskov is Kæmpehøjen with a passage grave of 10 supporting stones and two  somewhat downfallen cover stones; furthermore a longhill, two hills and a stone with 39 hollows - all in the forests under Rathlousdal.
Demolished or destroyed: 3 stone graves and one hill. 

In a moor at Smederup was found a large wooden vessel with handles, placed in the moor as a well, here were broken pieces from 14 clay pots; not far from here were found 311 bronze rings, armrings, necklaces and eyelet rings - in Celtic Iron age, from where all the finds come, the moor was probably used as a sacrifice place.

Names in the Middle Ages:
Gosmer (1302 Gasæmær, 1534 Gosmer); Præstholm (1534 Prestholm); Fensten (1231 Phynsten, 1438 Finsteen); Smederup (1384 Smerup, 1544 Smerop); Søby (1231 Sæby); Dybvad (1544 Dybwadtt).

Source: Trap Danmark, Århus amt, 1963.
photo: grethe bachmann and stig bachmann nielsen, naturplan.dk